Travel company, The Asia, arranged an itinerary for me through Ho Chi Minh, Hoi An, Da Nang and Hanoi to photograph the various tours, experiences and local scenery they offer. A remarkably beautiful country. Photo: Richard Tilney-Bassett
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https://scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/2137549/how-bored-office-worker-hit-road-hong-kong-and-rest-world Travel & Leisure
How a bored office worker hit the road to Hong Kong and the rest of the world – and did it for free
Londoner Richard Tilney-Bassett dumped his office job for a camera and now barters his way around the world on his Glass Passport adventure, taking photographs in exchange for food, a bed and plane tickets
Uganda – Spent the day on the back of a motorcycle (boda) to photograph the Uganda Marathon. Sometimes using my rucksack to strap myself to the driver so I could face backwards and photograph as we moved. Photo: Richard Tilney-Bassett
Two years ago Richard Tilney-Bassett was living in London and feeling lost and directionless. After earning a degree in biosciences in 2013 he’d fallen into an office job that paid the bills, but didn’t excite him. These days he travels the world doing what he loves and making new friends along the way – and it doesn’t cost him a dollar.
Inspiration for his dramatic life change came from Australian photographer Shantanu Starick who set up a project in 2012 called the Pixel Trade, trading his services for a few days, photographing any subject, in return for necessities. Starick’s stated aim was to “reintroduce the bartering system into day-to-day life in a global environment”.
The project reminded Tilney-Bassett of a musician who went to university with him, Josh Savage, who used connections made online to establish “The Living Room Tour”, solo touring across five countries and playing intimate gigs in the homes of online fans.
Tilney-Bassett had only left Europe once and wasn’t well travelled, but he was determined to change that. He bought a camera and in the summer of 2016 he launched his own venture, The Glass Passport.
“I live and travel the world as a photographer. No money changes hands, instead I trade in three alternative currencies – food, accommodation and transport,” says the 26-year-old.
Tilney-Bassett photographs a project for a host in exchange for each of these three things. His first trade was in June 2016, photographing work for an artist in York, that was followed by a project for a small brewery in the same city and then a job for a travel company in Scotland. After six months travelling around the UK and living out of a suitcase, The Glass Passport took off and he has since travelled to four continents. Australia is next.
Tilney-Bassett on Lantau Island, Hong Kong. Photo: Richard Tilney-Bassett
The Uganda International Marathon. A seven-day fundraising event run by a charity in Masaka, Uganda culminating in the 10km, 21km or 42km race of local and international runners. I documented the various projects the charity is supporting, local life and behind the scenes as the team organised and ran the event in a country where nothing quite goes to plan. Photo: Richard Tilney-Bassett
A particularly memorable trip was photographing a marathon in Uganda. The marathon was organised by a British charity and the young team running it didn’t have the budget to pay for a corporate photographer.
“It was a fantastic team to be part of and it was a spectacular natural environment,” says Tilney-Bassett. “I was travelling down dirt tracks strapped to the back of a motorcycle. They paid for my return flight from London and I stayed with the team in the house that they operated out of in Uganda.”
In October The Glass Passport brought him to Hong Kong to do a job for an events company and then a smaller project for a subscription dog food business, staying on Lantau with the business owner. He also spent a few days in Repulse Bay, photographing a family and staying in their spare room.
“With Hong Kong being such a hub for so many nationalities and people from different backgrounds it makes it easier to find hosts receptive to the idea of trading,” he says.
I was hosted on a racing horse farm by a vet, Anna, in the Abu Dhabi countryside, on one free day Anna booked me to go dune bashing in a 4x4 in the desert. Repeatedly I find my hosts to be incredibly generous, going above and beyond to provide my essential needs to show me more of their life/home/area. Photo: Richard Tilney-Bassett
“There are larger projects that are booked further ahead and justify flights and transport,” he says. “And once there, I’m free to find smaller projects.”
I live and travel the world as a photographer. No money changes hands, instead I trade in three alternative currencies – food, accommodation and transport
Tilney-Bassett says relying on the kindness of strangers can be a rewarding experience. For one, he is usually very well fed. “People go into hosting mode and more often than not take me out and share with me their corner of the city,”he says. “I get a glimpse of their part of the world, places I would never have gone to as a tourist.”
Eighteen months into the project he has done almost 90 trades and in most cases stays in touch with the people he has photographed. The Glass Passport is serving as a global apprenticeship in photography and although he hasn’t got a fixed date for how long the project will continue he is aiming for all continents.
During my time in Germany I was hosted in Clausthal-Zellerfeld, a small town in the Harz Mountains. As well as hikes through the winter forest and spinning doughnuts around a snow buried car park, my hosts had a blacksmith’s forge in their house I couldn’t resist photographing. Photo: Richard Tilney-Bassett
Follow Tilney-Bassett’s adventures at theglasspassport.com